China ends 727 steel plants for ‘ditiaogang’

CHINA has closed 727 steel plants for
producing “ditiaogang” — low-quality steel made from scrap metal — since
authorities called for eliminating such production at the end of last year.

A list of
such plants categorized by provinces was published on csteelnews.com, the China
Iron and Steel Industry Association’s website.

A total
of 28 provinces have cracked down on local low-quality steel producers
following the central government’s command last November.

They have
also named the companies, which were integrated by the association’s website
into the list.

Liaoning Provincetops the list,
closing down 66 companies producing the low quaity steel, followed byJiangsuProvinceandSichuanProvince, which each closed 63.

Other
provinces which have shut down more than 30 such plants includeYunnan,Shandong,HebeiandFujian.

The
low-quality steel problem is nationwide and includes remote regions such asTibetand
Xinjiang. But most illegal plants are along the east coast. Provinces such asJiangsuandShandongare among “the most afflicted areas” the National Development and Reform
Commission says.

The list
does not include the capacity of the plants. But lwo-quality steel production
has been reduced by at least 120 million tons in the first half of the year,
various media outlets have reported, quoting Industrial Securities.

Authorities
have been urging local governments to overhaul steel industry operations in
their areas and close such plants.